Latest news with #AirportImprovementProgram
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Yahoo
Here's how much the feds put into Utah's national parks
More than 11 million people visited Utah's 'Mighty Five' national parks last year, a 5% increase over the previous year. In fact, national park visitation in the state grew 100% between 2005 and 2024. At the same time, National Park Service jobs grew 8%, according to a new report from the University of Utah's Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. As of 2024, more than 1,200 federal employees worked in tourism-related jobs in Utah, including 658 in leisure and hospitality (including national parks and recreation jobs) and 605 at the Federal Aviation Administration, per the report. In addition to Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park and Zion National Park, Utah is home to 13 other national monuments, national recreation and geologic areas and national historic places. 'President Theodore Roosevelt established Utah's first national monument, Natural Bridges, in 1908,' Jennifer Leaver, Gardner senior tourism analyst, said in the report. 'Since then, the state's travel and tourism industry has boomed, with its 18 national parks and places receiving upwards of 16 million combined visitors annually.' Park visitors spent $1.9 billion in Utah, generating a $3 billion economic impact in the state in 2023, according to the National Parks Service. Utah ranked third for national park visitor spending behind California and North Carolina. All 18 parks in Utah are staffed by federal employees and receive federal funding. The federal government allocated $48.9 million in ongoing funds to Utah's parks in 2023 and over $143 million in Great American Outdoor Act National Parks and Legacy Restoration Funds since 2021, according to the report. The state's parks receive a combination of U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Department of Transportation ongoing and one-time funds annually. The money includes $103.2 million for national park projects, $24.6 million for 13 Bureau of Land management projects, and $15.5 million for one Forest Service Project. Utah's national parks and places comprise 5.6 million acres of land in the state. The National Parks Service manages all of them except for Bears Ears, Grand Staircase-Escalante and Jurassic national monuments and Ashley Karst and Flaming Gorge national recreation areas. Southwestern, southeastern, and northwestern Utah had the highest number of federal leisure and hospitality jobs in 2024, excluding FAA jobs, which are concentrated in Salt Lake County, according to the report. Garfield, Wayne, and Grand counties had the largest shares of federal leisure and hospitality jobs to total jobs. Like the national parks and places, the state's airports also receive federal funding and employ federal workers. FAA jobs include air traffic controllers, aviation safety inspectors, aviation engineers and technical specialists. The U.S. Department of Transportation allocated $50.5 million in its Airport Improvement Program grant funds to the Salt Lake City International Airport and six regional and 11 municipal airports in 2024, per the report. The Salt Lake airport saw a record 28.3 million passengers last year. The Salt Lake airport received most of that funding ($34.8 million), while Utah's regional and municipal airports received $4.9 and $10.8 million, respectively. Utah's public transportation systems, including airports, roads, bridges, mass transit, and electric vehicle charging stations, have also received hundreds of millions of additional federal grant dollars in recent years. The report is the Gardner Institute's sixth in a series on state and federal economic connections.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Milwaukee airport building facility to lure cargo from Chicago area
Construction is underway at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport on a modern air cargo terminal that local officials say will make it easier for Wisconsin businesses to move goods domestically and internationally, but ultimate success still hinges on attracting one or more cargo airlines that can provide airlift. The speculative project will redevelop a significant portion of a former U.S. Force Reserve base into a 337,000-square-foot dedicated cargo building with parking for up to five Boeing 747-400 freighter aircraft and enhance adjacent taxiways to improve accessibility for widebody jets. An all-new airfreight facility in Milwaukee will be cheaper and more efficient for shippers in the region than having to truck goods 70 miles south to Chicago O'Hare airport, which is often congested and has high user fees, according to Milwaukee County officials and the developer. 'When this project is complete, builders and suppliers will be able to transport their raw materials and finished products in and out of Wisconsin more quickly and efficiently,' said Airport Director Brian Dranzik in a news release on a groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said the four largest shippers in the state – GE Healthcare, Rockwell Automation, packaging giant Amcor and Mercury Marine, a manufacturer of boat engines – are interested in utilizing Milwaukee airport (MKE) for air transport. 'I love the fact we're taking business from Illinois,' he said in a short speech during the event, which was recorded by a local TV station. The Illinois airports Crowley alluded to are Chicago O'Hare and Chicago Rockford. O'Hare is one of the largest gateways for international cargo. Chicago Rockford is a secondary airport much closer to the Wisconsin border that has successfully created a cargo friendly alternative to O'Hare, with logistics companies renting terminal space and arranging scheduled freighter services with widebody aircraft. Many businesses located in southeast Wisconsin, including newly established tech firms, ship goods through Chicago Rockford, but the vast majority rely on feeder trucks that connect the region to Chicago O'Hare, according to local logistics experts. Crow Holdings, a privately held real estate investment and development firm with $33 billion of assets under management, is financing and managing the air logistics center in exchange for a 50-year ground lease. The facility, estimated to cost $80 million, will have high ceilings, wide open areas to facilitate storage and sorting, 68 truck docks, and stalls for 75 trailers. It is scheduled for completion in from the Federal Aviation Administration's Airport Improvement Program, for the taxiway improvements, and the state of Wisconsin will cover $11.2 million of the total bill, according to the airport. The project involves tearing down a vacant business park on the former campus of the 440th Airlift Wing, extending the aircraft apron to add parking for an additional freighter and reconstructing a portion of the taxiway that doesn't meet standards. The discovery that the taxiway needed replacement slowed planning and resulted in a larger footprint than the originally planned 288,000 square feet. Developers assumed the Air Force had maintained the taxiway with overlays, but the thickness was only about 11.5 inches compared to a 19-inch subbase needed to support large cargo aircraft, said Jack Rabben, Crow's vice president of industrial, in an interview. Laying the concrete deeper meant a wider footprint was needed to achieve a minimal slope, resulting in more space that could accommodate a larger building, he explained. Existing infrastructure – power, water, sewer, fiber optic cable and roadways – and the site's proximity to the main runway attracted Crow because development costs will be much lower than a greenfield facility. And those savings will pass through to users, said Rabben. Key to monetizing the infrastructure, he said, is getting a critical mass of interested shippers and logistics providers that make it economically viable for a cargo airline to offer service at MKE. Crow is also engaging cargo agents for interest in running the cargo warehouse and handling truck-to-air transfers on behalf of airlines. 'All those shippers are currently flying products into other airports in Illinois. Obviously, it doesn't make sense to fly things into Illinois only to ship them up to Milwaukee in a truck,' Rabben said. Officials said the metro area has the third-highest-per-capita manufacturing base in the country. He said shippers will save close to 60% by operating out of MKE instead of Chicago O'Hare because of the lower ground rent, building rent, taxes, landing fees and trucking costs. Unlike facilities at many airports that are antiquated and functionally obsolete, the MKE cargo terminal will be built to the latest industry standards for efficient processing. Rabben said Crow's logistics center can easily be configured for a wide range of needs, including cold storage for pharmaceuticals and perishable foods, as well as live officials said the cargo facility also has the potential to attract passenger airlines by lowering the overall operating cost for all airlines at MKE. The new southside cargo facility will function in addition to an existing one where FedEx and UPS support a limited number of flights per week. The age of the legacy facility raises questions about how long it is serviceable, but MKE spokesperson Summer Hegranes said that 'there are no plans at this time to relocate existing cargo tenants or to make any changes to their space.' Convincing cargo airlines and logistics companies to establish operations at non-major airports is a tall order because the habit to move shipments through large metropolitan airports is ingrained and difficult to change. Southeast Wisconsin has a strong manufacturing and distribution base that could support additional air cargo service in Milwaukee, but capturing business from O'Hare will be a challenge, consultant Michael Webber said two years ago when Crow first floated the project. 'I think they're in a position to certainly pick up overflow from that Chicago market,' but O'Hare has an overwhelming advantage as an international gateway with a mix of cargo carried by passenger aircraft and freighters, Webber explained. Freight forwarders like using airports with a wide range of traffic from around the world because it gives them more shipping options and the ability to create specialized routes for their customers when direct flights aren't available. Secondary airports typically secure freighter services when a logistics company has a key client, or two, with enough volume to justify chartering dedicated flights to locations where they can enjoy priority treatment, said Webber, who once studied the cargo market for the MKE airport authority. Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch. UPS getting more elbow room at Gary/Chicago airport Kuehne+Nagel moves into new cargo facility at Birmingham airport The post Milwaukee airport building facility to lure cargo from Chicago area appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Air travel, passenger rail among focal points of Ohio transportation budget
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Billions of dollars are going to be spent in the state's two-year transportation budget, and lawmakers are working to decide where all that money goes. 'Even if you don't drive a car, you benefit from good roads and bridges and things like that,' Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said. 'I think it was both parties coming together and deciding to focus on Ohioans, what their needs are, not particular parties or controversial items,' ranking member of the Ohio House Finance Committee Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Westlake) said. Ohio Intel plant construction in New Albany delayed by at least three years There are still different views on how funds should be spent. Some of it is straight forward, like about $30 million, over two years, to highway safety. 'We're sharpening our pencil and we're trying to say we're not going to spend funds that we don't have to,' Chair of the Ohio House Finance Committee Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) said. Some of the money is going toward what lawmakers call innovation, including a new Division of Advanced Air Mobility. Representative Bernie Willis (R-Springfield) chairs the Ohio House Transportation Committee. He said a lot of people don't know this, but there are already things like charging stations for electric aircrafts at airports across the state. This division will help build on that momentum. 'These things are happening. They're active,' Willis said. 'And we want to be well ahead of this. And I think this is just a start to try to get the kind of infrastructure support we want for those airports.' Another new initiative called the Airport Improvement Program will get an estimated $5 million worth of the aircraft fuel sales tax. 'A large amount of dollars toward what are some really large projects at our airports that have been languishing,' Willis. Bill would create savings accounts for students attending private religious schools Passenger rail is also back in play. This version of the transportation budget puts $50,000 dollars, between two years, toward any costs that may be associated with Ohio rejoining the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Compact. 'There [are] folks like me who are less interested in talking about the train and other members who are not. So, I think, again, we're trying to come to a product that all members can support,' Stewart said. 'Let's at least take a baby step here, let's dip our toe in the water and see what we think.' The compact does things like advocate for passenger rail funding. Willis said since Ohio left the compact in 2013, attitudes toward mass transit have changed in the state. 'I think everyone's mindset of what does mass transit look like and what are all the modes that we can get and how do we reduce the volume that we already have on our streets and roads? I think it's just another avenue,' he said. Willis said whether passenger rail is fully included will be a debate, but he is confident it will get to that point. 'I think we're going to get to the point where we will have commercial providers come to us and say, 'the business case is there and we're willing to run that for you,'' Willis said. 'And then it becomes something that's great for those who have disabilities and have limited mobility. I think the passenger rail opens up a lot of opportunities for a lot of people.' The bill also creates new driver's license requirements. It would change the law for someone applying for a limited term driver's license, which is generally a noncitizen with legal status in Ohio. 'We're going to require them to do what other new drivers have to do in the state of Ohio, which is have in-person experience behind the wheel of 50 hours and also take in-person driver's training,' Stewart said. 'We can't have folks coming here who have no experience with automobiles and walking out in the day behind the wheel.' While the bill was bipartisan and did not have a single vote against it in the House, Sweeney said they also missed out on something. The Ohio Department of Transportation advocated for a gas tax increase, but Stewart said there is 'no appetite,' for that. 'We're able to meet the needs of Ohio's infrastructure today. But if you talk to the [Ohio Department of Transportation], they say that we are looking at a $300 million hole to meet the transportation needs in the near future,' she said. The $11.5 billion spending bill passed the Ohio House unanimously on Wednesday and is now in the Ohio Senate for consideration. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Marshall Mitchell: Mitchell Municipal Airport could expand with new hangars
Feb. 28—MITCHELL — The Mitchell City Council is considering adding four hangars to the Mitchell Municipal Airport, but will the rent from the hangars outweigh the expense of building them? The city's airport revenue includes hangar rent, fuel, and gate card fees. The city's 2025 budgeted airport revenue is $163,742. However, current airport expenses exceed airport revenue and the city plans to subsidize 2025 airport operating costs in the amount of $241,704. Projected rent from the four proposed new hangars is $12,000 per year. It would take eight years for the city to start making money on the new hangars, according to Mitchell Public Works Director Joe Schroeder. The current hangars at the airport are full, and the city believes the proposed hangars will be filled and not sit vacant. "We've had quite a few inquiries about them already," Mitchell Airport Manager Dan London said. The city owns one hangar at the airport and leases land for the other 23 hangars. Most fit one plane. During its regular meeting on Feb. 18, the Mitchell City Council rejected all bids for a revenue producing hangar construction project at the Mitchell Municipal Airport. Staff recommended the bids be rejected because the two lowest bids did not meet the criteria of the bidding process, which is managed by Helms and Associates. The project will go through the bidding process again and then be presented to the council. The city has contracted for professional services in the amount of $202,251, with a projected budget of $1,621,129 for the hangar project. The engineer's estimate for the project is $1.188 million. The city has $1,383,800 in grant support toward the hangar, so the city will be responsible for any amount over the grant once a bid is awarded. Schroeder requested an additional $100,000 to bring the project from three hangars to four in hopes to meet the demand. The city has Federal Aviation Administration grants under the Airport Improvement Program. Airport aid includes a grant for airport hangar design, and $209,375 towards reconstruction of the airport runway, and $190,000 for pavement maintenance at the airport. The last two figures are annual grants based on the population of Mitchell. During peak hunting season, there can be anywhere from 15 to 20 planes parked outside at the airport. Most of them are Gulfstreams. "During pheasant season, we have quite a few planes, and they just tie them down outside," said London, who has been airport manager since August 2024. SPN Helms engineer Brooke Edgar considers the Mitchell Municipal Airport to be up for the task of handling cargo traffic. "It's very stout, well designed, well maintained. They've got two runways that any type of cargo aircraft could use," Edgar said. The Mitchell Area Development Corporation (MADC) would like to see more cargo planes utilize the airport, and for the Mitchell Municipal Airport to be a regional distribution point. "Mitchell has an airport that can take big planes, and (carriers) don't have to compete with commercial passenger flight times to fly in and out," MADC CEO Mike Lauritsen told the Mitchell Republic. Along the airport's secondary runway, there is room for cargo carriers to lease land from the city to build their own hangars or distribution buildings. "And our leases are cheap, which is how airports operate. It's an industry standard that they're relatively inexpensive," Schroeder said.
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Success breeds success': Murtha airport's momentum setting stage for busy year, leaders say
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Passenger totals aren't the only things on the rise at John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport. Activity is increasing across the entire 650-acre site, Airport Manager Cory Cree said. A partnership between St. Francis University and airport fixed-base operator Nulton Aviation Services allowed the Loretto university to launch its aviation maintenance technician program this past fall at the Richland Township airport, while a pilot training school continues to grow. Balance Restaurant began serving breakfast and lunch inside an airport terminal building that is tentatively set to see space for screened passengers expand in 2026. And efforts are progressing to expand parking for growing crowds and to add new hangars for aircraft and economic development, Cree said. 'It's a situation where success breeds success,' Cree said. 'We have a lot of momentum from 2024 that is kind of rolling over into 2025.' Cree said a broad partnership alongside airport officials has made that possible. That includes Nulton Aviation Services, SkyWest Airlines, the local aviation-focused nonprofit Aerium, two local colleges and the region's elected officials. Reclassification lands airport a funding boost Following several straight years of growth and two years with paid boarding numbers, or 'enplanements,' well above 10,000, the Federal Aviation Administration elevated the airport's commercial status to primary nonhub. This guarantees the airport will receive at least $1 million in Airport Improvement Program funds annually, plus additional Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds through 2027. That total adds up to $2.7 million for 2025, Cree said. 'This is what we've been working toward a long time,' Cree said. PHOTO GALLERY | Vision 2025 | John Murtha Johnstown–Cambria County Airport Airport officials can use the Airport Improvement Program funds for runway repairs, new maintenance equipment and safety upgrades, while the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law money offers broader opportunities. Upgrades in works Johnstown's airport offers daily trips to Chicago O'Hare International Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport through SkyWest Airlines' United Express flights. SkyWest's steady service to two major United Airlines hubs has been credited for driving up passenger numbers at the Johnstown airport in recent years. The airport's January 2025 numbers, for example, marked the third straight year in which monthly passenger totals increased from the previous year. Approximately 1,270 passengers embarked on flights from Johnstown in January, up from 888 in January 2024, which was part of a year that saw Johnstown record its highest totals in 24 years. Approximately 35,000 people flew to or from Johnstown last year. Airport chart The John Murtha Johnstown Cambria County Airport's passenger totals have grown since the facility started offering United Express flights. The growth has reached a point at which the airport is looking for more space for passengers to wait after they are screened before boarding their flights. The recent influx of funding dollars will be used to address that issue in the coming year, which could also allow the airport to host additional flights or larger planes, Cree said. Airport officials have already drawn up a preliminary plan that would create a post-screening room for additional passengers inside the existing terminal building space near the baggage return area. Cree said airport officials plan to have final designs drawn up for the project this fall, so the project can be advertised for bids in spring 2026. 'The airport will have to get the project approved through the Federal Aviation Administration's system, a procedural move that takes nine months to a year,' he said. But the process should be complete prior to bid advertising next year, he added. Airport officials are hoping to attract an ultra-low-cost carrier – a commercial air industry segment that includes companies such as Allegiant Air, Breeze Airways and Frontier Airlines, among others – to offer flights to Florida. Cree said additional ways to add service are also being explored, such as adding weekly charter flights to a southern U.S. destination. A project to expand the airport's parking lot is also being planned as a two-phase project. One phase would add 26 additional spaces alongside the terminal building. The second phase could add a larger lot nearby, across from the flight control tower. Taxiway lighting upgrades are also being eyed for 2026, with a plan to switch to efficient LED lights as a cost-savings initiative, Cree said. 'Many career pathways' The airline industry's national shortage of pilots is well-documented. And the need for mechanics to keep aircraft maintained is even more dire, studies show. Through Nulton Aviation Services and St. Francis University, programs are growing on site to answer both needs, offering pathways to lucrative careers. Nulton Aviation Flight Academy offers training to prepare students to become private and commercial pilots. The program has grown from 10 students in 2020 to more than 70 enrolled in flight training this year – more than 75% of them pursuing careers in aviation, Flight School Director Will Guzic said. 'There are so many career pathways now,' Guzic said. In just under two years, someone who has never flown before can get a commercial license (10 months) and then spend the next year logging air time as a flight instructor to pursue a career in charter or commercial aviation that starts out at $80,000 to $100,000 a year in salary, Guzic said. He said there are charter businesses across the region – in Johnstown, Bedford and Altoona, for example – that allow young pilots to stay local. Students can also pursue a commercial pathway to fly for SkyWest Airlines, which offers $17,500 tuition reimbursements to pilots it hires. St. Francis launched its aviation maintenance technician program in August inside a newly revamped space on Fox Run Road. Students learn inside a hangar-turned-classroom equipped with a single-prop aircraft and a CF34 jet engine during a 21-month program that prepares them to take the FAA's general, airframe and powerplant certificate tests – which would enable them to get to work in the field. St. Francis officials said careers start at $50,000 and climb from there. The university is enrolling its second class of students for its summer 2025 course, Program Director Brianna Pavkovich said in a January interview. Through a scholarship, the first five students to enroll for classes receive a Snap-on aviation maintenance toolbox valued at $5,400 – lowering the entry cost to begin taking the program. 'The Spring 2025 AMT Toolbox Scholarship underscores our mission to support hands-on learning and provide students with the tools they need to excel in the aviation industry,' said Pavkovich, noting that aviation tools are a required component of the program. 'This scholarship prepares students for success and demonstrates the value St. Francis University places on education and professional growth.' An aviation economy Through the annual Aerium Summit and year-round outreach, Aerium continues the push to introduce aviation into classrooms locally and across the state. Local airport leaders, including Nulton Aviation's Larry Nulton, envision building up a workforce of professionals to support the aviation industry. The goals include supporting local businesses already in the aviation field and luring new businesses to the region. In addition to land being offered as a tax-free Opportunity Zone, airport officials are aiming to achieve those goals through a planned regional jet hangar project, Cree said. The previously announced project aims to develop a space that would attract a jet maintenance company that would employ the region's aviation mechanics. Drone aviation programs for the design, testing and certification of the unmanned aircraft would also be incorporated into the facility, airport officials have said. Early construction is underway to upgrade Fox Run Road for additional traffic. Cree said that project will be completed later in 2025. Meanwhile, design work could proceed this year to enable site preparation to occur for the hangar in 2026, he said. Lockheed Martin Human Resources Manager Pat McCann said the aviation industry can become a major player in the region's economy. Lockheed Martin, a defense and aerospace manufacturing giant that partners with the aviation maintenance program, already employs more than 500 people 'and growing,' McCann said, in Richland Township and Davidsville – many of them supporting upgrades to the company's F-16 jet program. And the company would embrace the opportunity to add more employees if the workforce grows, McCann said. Johnstown's airport could drive in even more economic activity from the broader U.S. aviation industry, he added. 'People are starting to really understand the economic value an airport brings,' he said. And Johnstown's airport has something many others do not – room to grow that presents a 'great opportunity,' McCann said. 'When you step back and look at the busy northeast corridor, this is one of the few (airports) that has room for expansion and growth,' he said. 'Many times, they are landlocked.' Cree said that type of growth is possible because so many organizations – as well as state Reps. Jim Rigby, R-Ferndale, and Frank Burns, D-East Taylor Township, state Sen. Wayne Langerholc Jr., R-Richland Township, and U.S. Reps. John Joyce, R-Blair, and Glenn 'GT' Thompson, R-Centre – are working together. 'Many times, you don't see everyone rowing in the same direction at smaller airports,' he said. 'That's not the case here.'
